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As we learned from a nifty science trivia site from New Scientist called The Last Word, no hair grows forever. All the hair on your body, including the hair on your head, grows at a set rate for a specific period of time. After it reaches its pre-determined length, it falls out, and the hair-building process begins again. According to this hair loss treatment center site, the hair on the head of an adult male usually grows one half inch a month for about two to eight years. This growth period is called the anagen phase. The hair then stops growing for two to four months before falling out -- this dormant period is called the
telogen phase. Non-scalp hair has a vastly different anogen/telogen cycle. It grows at a much slower rate for two to three months, before having a much longer telogen phase. So the hair remains on your body, but isn't actively growing. So why does your leg hair have a shorter growth cycle? Because of varying degrees of hormones called cytokines that are regulated by your endocrine system. Most of the new hair growth/inhibitor drugs on the market alter the amounts of these cytokines, which are released naturally by your body.
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